


Hatsumode

by sparklyfaerie



Series: Kyoru Week 2020 [1]
Category: Fruits Basket, Fruits Basket (Anime 2019), Fruits Basket - Takaya Natsuki (Manga)
Genre: Day One: My Wish, F/M, Kyoru Week 2020, Set between season 2 eps 24 and 25
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-05
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:33:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26834506
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sparklyfaerie/pseuds/sparklyfaerie
Summary: Tohru goes with the Sohma household for their first shrine visit of the new year.
Relationships: Honda Tohru/Sohma Kyou
Series: Kyoru Week 2020 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1975333
Comments: 3
Kudos: 38





	Hatsumode

**Author's Note:**

> I did a little cursory research into hatsumode (the first shrine visit of the new year) for this fic. Everything is as accurate as I understand it to be, but some things may be incorrect. I did my best.
> 
> This is set between Episodes 24 and 25 of season 2.

Due to the nature of their curse, the Sohma family observed _Hatsumode_ on the seventh of January, rather than brave the crowds at the beginning of the week.

Tohru meandered along the shrine path with them, dressed in the old kimono her mother bought for her when she was thirteen. She loved the baby pink fabric, chosen by her mother to match the hair ribbons Tohru had been wearing when they’d been shopping for it; she’d selected a new set this year, matching them as close to the shade of pink of the kimono as possible.

Their party was bigger than last year; Momiji and Ayame had decided to tag along, and Hatsuharu had ditched his parents to come with Yuki. Tohru walked a little behind the main host, tugging at her obi and looking around nervously. It wasn’t as crowded as it usually was during the first three days of the new year, but there were still a sizable number of people making their first visit of the year, as well as several throngs of tourists crowding the courtyard. They were only one clumsy foreign tourist away from bumping into someone and transforming right in the middle of the crowd.

Exhausted by Ayame’s and Momiji’s loud antics, Kyo had fallen behind to keep her company. She kept sneaking glances at him as he trudged along in a blue kimono she’d never seen before, his arms stuffed into his sleeves in lieu of actual pockets.

“What?” He demanded when he noticed her looking.

She felt her cheeks warm as she looked back down at her feet. “Nothing. I was just thinking—is this new? You wore a different one last year.” She plucked at the draping sleeve.

He huffed a breath. “It’s Shishou’s old one.” He admitted. “My old one was too small.”

“That’s because you grew so much last year!” She beamed up at him, delighted. He’d groused when the seasons began to change that all his old winter clothes didn’t fit anymore. She’d endured a shopping trip with both he _and_ Yuki to replace their winter wardrobes a few weeks ago—the shop assistants had been nervous due to all the bickering and posturing, and they were actually asked to leave one store, but they’d managed to scrape together a decent selection of clothing each. She hadn’t had the heart to tell them that they’d probably have the same problem next summer. Boys kept growing long after girls did.

He scoffed. “I didn’t grow _that_ much.”

“Yes you did!” She insisted. “I used to come up to your nose when we met, remember? Now you’re _much_ taller than me!” She’d noticed it a lot, lately. With how close he tended get, she had to crane her neck upward to see him these days.

His lips twitched and he tapped her on the head with a closed fist. “Are you sure you’re not just shrinking?”

Her mouth dropped open, and then she narrowed her eyes at him. “I am not!” She would know. Arisa had a habit of taking all of their heights every so often, since she wanted to grow taller. Tohru had been exactly the same height for the past eighteen months.

He turned his head to her and opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by Momiji inserting himself between them. “Why are you two walking so _slow_?” He demanded, throwing an arm awkwardly around Kyo’s shoulders. Speaking of growth spurts, Momiji was getting taller too, she thought with a smile. He wasn’t quite as tall as Kyo or Yuki, but he was taller than her now. It was hard to believe that he barely reached her chin when they met.

“Get off me, you stupid rabbit!” Kyo grumbled, throwing the other boy’s arm off.

“Hey, hey! What are you going to wish for, Tohru?” Momiji turned to her instead. If he could, he’d probably be hanging all over her like he did Kyo, she thought wistfully.

She smiled beatifically. “The usual.” She said. “For good luck in my studies and at my job. And for Kyo-kun and Yuki-kun to start getting along better.” She left out her wish for the curse to break. She didn’t want them to feel bad that their problems weighed so heavily on her mind.

Kyo scoffed from Momiji’s other side. “Not in this lifetime.” And then he stalked ahead without them.

* * *

They offered their prayers one by one and then went their separate ways—the adults had things to do; Yuki and Hatsuharu disappeared into the crowd, and Kyo announced that he was going home.

“You don’t want a charm?” Tohru blinked at him, even as Momiji took her hand and started trying to tug her along.

He shook his head. “That shit’s just a useless cash grab anyway. They never actually work.”

Tohru frowned a little. “But it’s fun!” She insisted. “You should at least do an _ema_! You must have _something_ to wish for!”

He looked at her askance, eyes difficult to read. As far as she was aware, Kyo didn’t know she knew about his impending confinement next year; he probably thought that, with so little time left to him on the outside, it was useless to wish for anything. But still, he sighed _._ “ _Fine_.”

“You _really_ can’t say no to Tohru, huh?” Momiji crowed, elbowing Kyo in the ribs, and then bolted when Kyo made to throttle him. She saw him jump onto Hatsuharu’s back; the other boy didn’t even stumble.

“He’s such a fucking kid.” Kyo grumbled, shoving his hands back into his sleeves.

Tohru simply smiled indulgently. She was one of the few people who had actually seen how mature Momiji really was. It was like Kyo’s anger and Yuki’s withdrawal—his own personal way of dealing with the things wrong in his life; like them, without it, the weight of the curse would crush him completely.

“Come on, let’s write our wishes.” She said softly, tugging gently on the sleeve of Kyo’s kimono. He sighed and fell into step next to her.

She paid for her wooden plaque and moved to the side to write her wish. Cognizant of the fact that anyone would be able to read it, she thought for a moment and then wrote it as vaguely as possible.

_I wish that the cause of my friends’ unhappiness will leave them, and that happiness will come to all of them._

She straightened up and handed the marker back to the person behind the stall. Kyo materialised at her side. “Finished writing?”

“Yes!” She beamed up at him, hiding the writing against her chest. He would know _exactly_ what it meant if he read it. “Have you?”

He nodded and wrapped his fingers around her elbow, tugging her over to hang her _ema_. She hung it carefully, heart thumping as Kyo hung his on the hook next to hers. Then he turned to her. “Happy?” He asked, sounding vaguely amused.

“Yes! Very happy!” She cast her eyes around. “Oh! Kyo-kun, let’s go get a fortune!”

“ _Why_?” He complained as she grabbed his hand and started tugging him over.

“It’s _fun_!” She reminded him. “Come on!”

* * *

In the end, she managed to convince Kyo to both buy a charm for academic success, _and_ to draw a fortune.

“I told you, it’s a waste of money.” He groused, making to crumble it in his fist.

She rescued it with a laugh. “You only say that because we both drew bad ones. Come and tie it onto the tree—it’ll turn into a blessing!”

He rolled his eyes but followed, tying the fortune with his left hand. She had a little difficulty, but also managed to complete her task without too much trouble.

“Can we go home now?” Kyo sighed.

“I guess so.” Tohru giggled at his discomfort. “It’s starting to get a little crowded.”

Indeed it was; tourists were starting to arrive by the busload, and it was getting dangerous for even the most careful Sohma. Sticking to the very edges of the shrine grounds, Tohru took Kyo’s hand and the two of them skirted around to the exit. Somewhere along the way, their fingers had interlaced, causing her cheeks to warm. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye to find his face impassive as he looked around, and fought down the thumping of her heart for the entire walk home.

Little did she know that this would be how she’d walk home from every _hatsumode_ for the rest of her life.


End file.
